Protected by April Zyon

jogged to the bedroom.
    She had no clue what she was
checking for, but she began to search for anything that might be out of the ordinary.
She frowned again. “What the bloody hell is this?” There was some kind of weird
little black dot on the inside of a lampshade. “Jason?” she called a little
louder. “What the fa-hell is this?”
    He came back out with a bag that
he tossed toward the door, which landed with a distinctly heavy sound. “Did you
just say ‘fa-hell’ to me?” he asked with an amused look. “What the hell is
‘fa-hell,’ Vivian?” He took the lamp from her, tipped it back, then let loose
another string of cursing in that same language as before from the restaurant.
She didn’t know the words, but the tone and way he spat them out told her all
she needed to know.
    “It’s my way of saying fucking hell. I mush them together so it
isn’t quite as offensive. What are you saying when you’re cussing? And I know you are just by the look on your face.
What is that?”
    “This is a microphone. Not only
was someone watching me, they were recording it, too. The cursing, you don’t
need to know. You’re much too young for most of what I said,” he told her. “We
need to leave now, and I have everything. So let’s get going.” He set the lamp
aside with a thump .
    “What about James’s room?” She
slipped her hand into his. “If this was in your room, do you think there was
one in James’s?” Then she went pale. “Crapballs, we … oh God, someone recorded
us.” She didn’t like the thought that someone had watched her amazing and
magical joining with Jason. Oh crap, and
the things that he told me? “This is very bad, isn’t it?”
    “Very,” he growled. He took her
hand and tugged her to the door. Grabbing up his bag, he ushered her into the
hall and toward the next room. They were inside quickly and came to a stop just
as fast. It was a disaster zone and a half. Someone had torn the space apart.
“Stay here,” he told her, dropping his bag and pulling a gun out from somewhere
under his coat. He moved through the area slowly.
    Vivian panted, her back to the
wall, holding a table lamp in her hands she didn’t even recall grabbing, with
her shield firmly in place. She watched Jason as he swept the room with a
really big and really scary firearm. “Please tell me that this is just some
jealous woman upset with James?”
    He shot her a look that clearly
said “no.” Then he disappeared from view for a few minutes before he was
striding back to her, tucking the gun out of sight. “The suite is clear. Son of
a bitch, someone did a number in here. I have no idea what they were looking
for, but we need to get all of James’s stuff together and get to your place,
fast.”
    “Okay,” she whispered and put
the lamp down. She was shaking. She hated crime. She hated puzzles, and she
really hated the thought of being in danger. “What do I need to get?” She felt
the shield around her drop down now that Jason was close. “He’ll have a massive
bill, so don’t be shocked,” she muttered.
    “I don’t care,” Jason told her.
Reaching out, he wrapped his hand around her neck and drew her to him. “You’re
safe, Vivian. I don’t know who did this, but when I find them, they will pay
for it. Mainly for scaring you. I need you to see if he left anything out
here—books, weapons, his toothbrush, anything personal that’s not hotel
property. You’re going to have to dig around a bit, but be careful, there could
be broken glass, given the mess. I’ll clear the bedroom and bathroom, then come
out and help you. Thankfully, the bathroom was only rifled, so it’ll be quick.”
    “Okay, sounds like a plan.” Viv
looked around the room and nodded. I can
do this . Very carefully, she began to search through the broken and
shredded items before tossing what looked to be bits of a leather coat into a
bag. “I think James is going to be pretty peeved off. His leather coat got
ripped